Once
by Axelkin
Summary: Just once Uryu would like to know why Ichigo is the source of all his problems. That is, until Grimmjow comes to him with a request and Ichigo invites him to a party. One-shot, highschool AU, IchiUri. Gift for Noxi.


A/N: This is not exactly what I originally set out to write... It was supposed to be some lemony, possibly three-way, goodness gift for the lovely Noxi on dA for drawing me the most amazing punk IchiUri. Seriously, go check it out at: el-and-noxi dot deviantart dot com . The piece is called Stop Fussing. Still, this is for her. She is amazing.

Perhaps I'm cursed to never be able to write one-time smutt again...

I don't know what's wrong with me. RL has been one hell of a ride lately. Graphomania kicking in again. Video games, cosplay- oi. For those who follow GMC, I'll be getting back to that now.

* * *

Once

Swirl around, then cut. Ishida Uryu sighed. With his chin resting in his palm he clicked his chopsticks together twice. Slowly and deliberately he poked at his bento again. What was once appetizing now reduced to mush. The different colored food items churned together looked like unicorn vomit. Uryu blanched at the thought and nearly face-planted the table. _Yeah, that'd be real smooth Mr. Student Council President…_ Carefully Uryu forced himself to set aside his utensils and with a delicate grace, packed his mutilated lunch together.

He shouldn't be having problems like this. And it wasn't like he was trying to starve himself. He frowned waiting for his stomach to growl. Instead it twisted painfully back as if mocking him. Adjusting the pair of silver spectacles Uryu huffed to himself. _Well screw you then._ The cafeteria door banged open through the usual chatter and a group of students rushed in from the cold afternoon.

Uryu turned and looked beyond the neat line of glass windows in the concrete courtyard at the source of all his problems. There stood the rambunctious, deviously dressed and all around bad boy Kurosaki Ichigo. With a voice matching the raging orange mop of hair that rang clear through the swung open door and a rugged half grin that igniting chilling sighs through the underclass girls. So mischievous that the principal made Ichigo the captain of the Kendo team just to keep him in check. Uryu shivered just as the door slammed shut. Regardless to say, Kurosaki Ichigo was everything he was not. And that was only the beginning.

* * *

The general silence never bothered Uryu. Everything else was just a distraction. The usual summer hum of insects and the electric wires sizzling in the heat was replaced by the chilly breeze where he could hear his heart beat and his breathing cut short. Yet inside none of that mattered as the artificial lights whined and the voices of the handy-crafts club girls wheezed just as persistent.

Uryu stared outside. It had started to snow. The grey sky dotted with fuzzy white patches resembled pieces of poke-a-dotted fabric when he took his glasses off. Uryu sat there mesmerized; absently rolling the light blue twill between his fingers wishing he was outside sitting under a tree practicing his stitches instead.

His desk jerked, pulling him back to reality. The frantic buzz coming to a halt. Uryu jumped slightly, dropping the fold of fabric into his lap. Slowly he looked over. The black nail polish had begun to chip where the wearer obviously had been chewing. The fingers tapped anxiously on his desk.

"Yo, four-eyes. I'm up here."

Uryu snapped his eyes up at the pastel blue eyes with matching eye-makeup markings. In his opinion, it looked like the wannabe Espada smeared it on with a crayon. His hair not much better as the messy locks probably had a week's worth of slept in hair-gel. Uryu was surprised the white shirt under the unzipped uniform wasn't crinkled. "What do you want, Jaegerjaquez." He stated harshly and narrowed his gaze.

Grimmjow huffed. He looked down his long nose at Uryu. "Don't get too excited, _Mr. President_." Slowly he leaned forward. "I've gotta request for ya."

This time Uryu snorted. Picking up the forgotten fabric he attempted to look busy. "Like I'd do something for you."

The desk creaked as Grimmjow laughed and pressed his weight into leaning forward. "It's not for me really. Ya see, with the holidays comin' up I've just got to find the right gift for my best friend. So I came to see if yer up for the challenge."

"_W-what?!_" Uryu dropped his work again. Everyone knew who Grimmjow's best friend was. And that someone was- _Kurosaki Ichigo. _His whole world suddenly only contained the two foot radius in which he sat. The silence feed-backed in his ears and the chilling curl in his veins made him wonder if someone had left a window open. Yet all he could do was sit there staring. He was an ice sculpture waiting for the spring to melt him and bring his back to reality. _W-what in the hell does he mean by-_

Grimmjow sighed. "Ya heard me. Or are ya _not_ the head of the _handy-crafts-club_?" He asked without even looking at him. The sextet stood up straight before continuing. "Now, I was thinking something edgy but not too high-strung. Can't have Ichi walking around like a strawberry fruit-cake. It needs to stand out though. And not clash with anything else he might wear." Uryu continued to stare. Grimmjow's voice fazing into the fuzzy background hum. "-Hey, yo- ya gettin' all this?"

"Huh?" Uryu frowned. "Uh, no. I don't even get what you're asking."

"Ichigo needs a new jacket. I'd want one before the holidays start."

"Er, okay… And you're telling me why?" Honestly, he felt like Grimmjow had taken one too many energy pills and gone off the deep end.

The sextet was starting to look annoyed and glared down at him again. "Because you're gonna make it." He said in a matter-of-fact tone.

Uryu shook his head. "Sorry, what?" _Did he just say…_ "Why would I do that?" Grimmjow stood his ground giving him the same look from not but a minute before. "I don't even have any measurements to go off of. How am I suppose-" The thud of a heavy jacket hitting his desk cut him off.

"Will this do?" Grimmjow asked.

Slowly, Uryu reached out to touch the royal purple fabric. It was worn soft and smelled like crushed mint. The scent tickled his nose and he momentarily forgot how to breathe. "Well, I suppose in a pinch." He said quietly.

"Well good." The sextet smirked. Folding his arms, he leaned against another desk as he watched Uryu carefully pick up the jacket and turn it around. "Better hurry. Practice is almost over. And I don't want him to figure it out."

Uryu didn't think either of them were keen enough to put more than one thing together at a time. But he didn't argue as he pulled out his measuring tape from his bag and quickly jotted down some numbers. It seemed to fit Ichigo rather well, so the specs should be good… right? Not that he was really paying that much attention.

As soon as he scribbled the last number down, Grimmjow yanked the jacket from him and swung around. "Friday." He stated quickly. "After first bell, during morning kendo practice, in the courtyard." All he could do was nod, swallowing the lump in his throat. Then he was alone. Sort of.

"I-Ishida-kun… are you really going to make it?" Then the swarm came. The gossiping, petite girls of the handy-crafts club fluttered around. They buzzed with excitement asking every question possibly known to man. All the while Uryu gaped down at the scribbled notes. The voices faded into the hum of the lights as he blinked at his still tingling fingers. _Oh gods, what have I gotten myself into?_ This time, he did face-plant his desk.

* * *

Contrary to belief, Kurosaki Ichigo was rather smart. At least when he wanted to be. But his naturally crazy hair and fairly built body made it difficult to fall in with a different crowd. Not that it was all bad. The guys were trouble makers but only mildly, leaving the heavier bruteness to the local street gangs like the Espadas.

Still, regardless of his looks Ichigo could actually think things out. That was why he was here; standing against the dojo's wooden doorframe watching. The other didn't seem to notice his presence and at the moment Ichigo disinclined to interrupt.

By now Ichigo shouldn't be surprised the geek was on the archery team. _As if being the head of a school club, student president and top of the class wasn't enough._ Yet he had to admit the guy had some sort of ethereal grace about him. Posing just ever so slightly as he drew and fired the elegant bow just seemed to add to the mysterious factor that suddenly became Ishida Uryu.

As he watched the arrows fly, Ichigo knew he had been right. There was no way Grimmjow had purchased his newly branded, perfectly fitting, black leather jacket. Showing off every angle just right it was by far the most flattering thing he had ever worn. _It's just too perfect._ Ichigo thought just as Uryu hit the target dead center for the tenth time in a row.

"Do you ever miss?" Ichigo asked.

Uryu must have really been lost in thought as he swung in place. Long pale fingers slipped and an arrow whizzed quickly through the air followed by a gasp. "Shit!" Ichigo was glad his reflexes had been honed through years of Kendo. He sidestepped just in time. "I'm so sor-" The archer stopped. Sparkling sapphires behind silver frames widened as their eyes met.

Ichigo raised an eyebrow. Carefully he reached over and worked the arrow out of the abused wall. "I guess it's a good thing you do." His tennis shoes crunched on the freshly fallen snow as he stepped out into the archery field. Offering the arrow once he reached the young archer.

The calculated blue looked him over. A light scowl crossed his face as Uryu's gaze lingered slightly before snapping away. _But hey, it's not like I wasn't checking him out a few minutes ago._ A raven haired beauty dress in a dark blue hakama and keikogi white as the latent snow covered world. The cotton was stiff from the cold, yet somehow vibrant despite how mute they were against the tiny practice yard. If he hadn't looked twice, Ichigo would have thought the slender archer to be a girl. Maybe a bit too flat chested and a bit lanky, but attractive all the same.

The sound of Uryu clearing his throat brought him back. Taking the arrow the archer frowned. "Um, did you need something?" Uryu sounded hesitant. Almost like he was unsure of his own question.

He realized they had become stone garden gnomes. The only signs of life the puffs of frosted air as they breathed. Quiet as the stillborn forest surrounding a frozen lake that laid just beyond the school dojo. "Thank you."

"Eh?" The archer shook his head in surprise. "For what?"

Ichigo sighed. "Grim may be a bit of a punk, but he's not that dumb." He watched as Uryu rolled the arrow between pale slender fingers. And the bow rested in a tightly wound grip of the other. "Okay, maybe a little. But he did have a good idea to ask for your help."

The archer looked torn between cracking a smile and falling into a scowl. Instead, Uryu studied him openly. After a long moment he spoke. "Hmm, people don't give you enough credit." He looked off in the direction of the lake.

Suddenly Ichigo felt domesticated. Moments filling wintery days with marshmallowed hot chocolate, warm woven sweaters, and ice skating sessions that overflowed with laughter and smiles. A gentle, calmness that was not his own brash life in which his clothing style really spoke about his walk of life. Where fashion did not override the staple of stereotypes. Ichigo coughed. "I wanted to invite you to next week's holiday party."

"Why?" They were looking at each other again. It was confusing how calmly direct Uryu was. Perhaps Ichigo just never noticed. After all, this was the longest, and possibly only, conversation they had ever had.

"Well, to thank you. And I doubt Grim gave you the chance to back out of making me this." He figure the cuff between gloved fingers. "It must have set you back a little to make something so exquisite."

The guilty look turned sour and Uryu narrowed his gaze. "It was nothing. Besides the student council members are always invited to class events even outside of school." The coolness of his voice brushed him off.

"Isn't a personal invite a bit different though?"

Again, the wondering oceanic orbs studied him. Ichigo wasn't sure if he liked it or not. So he watched back. The tiny snowflakes that still fell hit the black hair and melted. One floated down and hit the long eyelashes. When Uryu blinked and brushed it away with his wrist it was like a spell rippled and broke. "You know," he started, picking up a quiver filled with arrows off the ground and swung them over his shoulder. "You're nicer than what everyone says."

Ichigo grinned. He was used to those words when he actually took time to talk with someone. So instead of setting off a wildfire, his voice filled with hope. "So you'll be there?" His mind was made up. Ishida Uryu was _going_ to the party.

Equipment in hand, Uryu looked back just before entering the dojo looking thoughtful. "Maybe."

* * *

"Yo,"

Uryu glanced up. A chair scraped across the wooden floor. He watched as Ichigo swung his leg over and sat in front of him, arms resting on the back of the chair. Slowly he looked back down at his binder full of neatly written calculus notes. The classic half grin faded over the edge of his glasses. Ichigo lowered to his level, resting his face on his arms. "Yes?" He asked without looking up after the third failed attempt to get halfway through a problem.

"Have you thought about it?" This was the second time in three days. Uryu found it a bit odd. _Was he always this friendly? I can't remember._ Over the past few days Ichigo had shown more attention to him. Waving across the hall while passing by, sometimes with the same crooked grin he sported now. The trouble maker was getting odd looks from his friends. He didn't blame them. Ichigo was being weird.

He sighed and tapped his pencil on the pad of paper. "Well, it is impossible to determine the fractal of the root sum without first subtracting x divided by nine." As Uryu spoke, he traced over each number, letter and symbol.

Ichigo stared at him blankly. Blinking rapidly before shaking his head. "That's _not_ what I meant…" Honeyed almonds followed his hand as he continued to write the numbers again. His limbs on auto-pilot like during class. It allowed him to let his mind wonder. Like if Ichigo's breath tasted like chestnuts and hair smelled like tangerines. It left his mouth dry and the tin of fresh mint leaves half empty by mid-morning.

He was in the middle of sighing when the pencil slipped away from his fingers. "Hey!" Uryu scowled.

"You're doing it again."

"What am I doing?" He frowned while Ichigo looked thoughtful while spinning the pencil between his fingers.

"Ya get this look on your face and you kinda space out. I don't think Ochi-sensei notices though."

Uryu narrowed his gaze. "You've been watching me during class?"

To at which Ichigo answered with a shrug. "There's just nothing going on outside." He almost believed him, except the swordsman hadn't been paying attention to him before. "Besides I think you're trying to avoid answering my question."

Uryu opened his mouth to retort but got a marbled look. He frowned and scooted in his seat to slouch from his usual straight and proper pose. Slowly he crossed his arms and glance around. No one was paying them any heed. He thought it strange that no one was noticing Ichigo's odd behavior. It was like he did so every day. "I said maybe." He reached out to grab his stolen writing tool and came up empty handed.

Ichigo shook his head. "Not good enough."

With a huff, Uryu returned to his previous position. His desk shifted as Ichigo lifted his foot and rested it against one of the legs. "Why is it so important that I be there? Are you planning on humiliating me or something?"

The twirling of his pencil stopped. A genuinely flabbergasted look graced Ichigo's face. "Uh, no. I just think you need to unwind. Get out a bit while you're still young. Live a little. Ya know."

"What? Getting shit-faced, a bad backside and no memory? No thanks."

The swordsman frowned. "Oh come on. You know that's not what I'm saying."

"What I'm saying is I don't even know you." Uryu answered with just as much distain.

Ichigo huffed. "Maybe that's your problem. Nobody knows you either."

"Perhaps I like it that way. Besides you have yet to even say my name." Silence followed. It ticked from beyond the grave. He didn't check to see if they had caught the attention of the other homeroom student still studying nearby. The feeling prickled at the back of his neck. Thousands of pressure needles driving into the base of his and up into his brain. _Just stop here, now._ But it felt like he was caught in a loop. One that never ended and always found its way around again. It was always be what started it all. "Say it."

"What?" Ichgio just might have to practice his articulation skills.

He turned his gaze and locked eyes with the hazelnut. It was warm, it was entrapping, and it brought him down to earth. Uryu swallowed. It was as though his voice was no longer his own. "My name."

For quite some time they stared at each other. Uryu's blood raced and the other looked pensive. He was sure it wasn't because Ichigo didn't know it. Moments passed between them. Like before his world was suddenly reduced to the small portion surrounding his desk. Everything else a blur, the whole world inside and out meshed together and swirled around their bubble of existence.

Ichigo licked his lips and spoke. His gaze firm unlike his voice. "I-Ishida-" he paused. "-kun." The honorific hung awkwardly between them.

Slowly Uryu reached out and removed his pencil from the slightly limp hand. He placed it with his workbooks and neatly picked them up to slide into his bag. When he stood, the chair scratched against the floor and Ichigo blinked at him. The bubble broken, bursting back into the rightful artificial hues created by the whining lights above.

"Wait," Ichigo called out to him. "You didn't answer my question."

Calmly, the collection of words fell. Puzzle pieces waiting to be placed in the right order. "Does everyone really know you?" With that, Uryu turned and left. Lunch time was going to present another rainbow unicorn disaster.

* * *

The first Sunday after the start of the winter holidays didn't come fast enough. Each day Ichigo pondered. The cryptic words haunting him even when he laid in bed attempting to fall asleep. As he rationalized to himself the answer felt double edged. _He's just too smart for his own good._ That was it. Some sort of mind voodoo trickery that was being played on him. So instead he waited, anxiously. Curiously giving the graceful archer thoughtful looks as their paths brushed along each other.

Classes dismissed and the long trek of planning a part swung into full motion. Grimmjow zipped about with a million different things for everyone who was taking part until sudden exhaustion overwhelmed him. And then he would slouch somewhere, lazy as a cat in a Tuesday morning sunbeam. This left Ichigo with the tasks at hand and giving him little time to think about if Uryu would be there.

Still, even through the last minute rush to perfection and the first stragglers trickling in, Ichigo couldn't help but feel the apprehension that he would not show. The loud beets from the DJ's speakers thumped to the drum of a variety of popular hits while the beer thinned his blood making it race faster, hotter and soon the excitement of the growing crowd made him forget that he just might have been turned down. Despite that fact that it wasn't a real offer per say.

"This is great, Ichi!" Grimmjow's toothy grin flashed. Waving the bright red cup in the air as the group of surrounding dancers answered the DJ's call.

"Yeah," he answered back as loud as he could. His voice barely making it over the shouts. _Uh, maybe it wasn't a good idea to have this at someone's house._ "Hey, ya sure your par-"

Ichigo was cut off by a group of excited cries. By the sound of it, it was a group of girls near the entrance. He had lost all of Grimmjow's attention. "Oh my Gods it's Abarai-sama!" His best friend's enthusiasm ringing in his ears along with the music. "I dunno who invited him but _hell fucking yes_! C'mon, let's go meet him!" Abarai Renji; former upperclassman who's art skills dazzled the imagination of many young adults and teens. He had once tagged the gym lockers with bright blue and flame red paint running down half the hall with the girls' sports instructor fighting off a kraken that looked more like a tentacle beast. Now he was one of the most well-known tattoo artist in town.

Frowning he allowed Grimmjow to drag him along through the press of too many people condensed in a too small room. He lifted his cup up in attempt to keep its contents from spilling when he caught a glimpse of darkness. It soaked in the color to a solid black. He was sleek with thinly drawn eyeliner. Silver glimmered against the soft leather, over ears and lanky fingers. Black jagged bolts graced perfectly pale skin, making the electric energy stand out. Ichigo found himself grounded in place, completely stunned by the way the dark lightening swayed to the popular spunky dance tunes that suggested body movements that would otherwise get one arrested in public. Long raven bangs were pinned back to show off a pair of stylish glasses that framed deep sapphire eyes. _Is that?_

He opened his mouth to call and find out when everything ping-ponged and he lost his balance along with his cup. A girl shrieked when the liquid splashed down the front of her shirt. It didn't take long before more drinks where being spilled among the group filled with laughter. Ichigo's apology lost to the intoxication of crowd vitality. As was the ever enthusiastic Grimmjow; and his dancing electricity. He searched the house. Each room looked over until he had enough of the stuffiness of body heat and the scent of bitter beer.

Eventually he found himself outside in the cool evening air. The grass, trees and rooftops lightly covered in layers of fallen snow. He looked up at the midnight's sky feeling lost in the darkened stardust. For a while he was the fallen prince of the gilded heavens. And when Ichigo finally turned around to return to the inevitability of whom he had never really chosen to be, there he was.

* * *

_What am I doing here?_ Uryu sighed. With chilling fingers he reached up and pulled out the pins that kept his bangs up. He placed them in his coat pocket and listened to the distant thud bellow his feet. The cool evening air slowed his thumping veins away from the overpowering music. Moving to the sway of American popular dance was exhausting. But it wasn't the only reason his heart fluttered. And it had nothing to do with the flowing spirits of this night.

Slowly he swallowed the dryness that collected in his throat and ran a hand through his hair to untangle the waves that had developed. His hand shook slightly as he pulled it back and stared at the black ink. It seemed almost redundant now. Despite the fact he had begged Renji to do them. His cousin had been difficult to persuade. Mostly because Uryu had originally asked for real ones. _"You're kidding, right? Your dad would kill me, Uryu."_ Eventually Renji had caved, convinced that he wanted them to impress someone special, and instead suggested a less permanent option. But now that he was here, Uryu wasn't sure anymore. He frowned. _Why do I even want his attention? It's not like-_

"Hey!" He jumped from his seat on the little sill to the window that overlooked the roof. "Yo, Ishida!"

Uryu looked down the eave. Orange and black stood out against the radiant white. He blinked to make sure he wasn't seeing things. _Is he… talking to me?_ Sure enough Ichigo waved at him, a lopsided grin plastered across his face. He raised a shy hand and waved back slowly. _Huh,_ he mused. _Wait, what is he-_

"Oi!" Ichigo was half way up the nearby tree that limbs came close to the rooftop. "What're ya doin' ya idiot?!" He could hear the high tenor voice ringing over the yard from inside. Grimmjow must have opened a window bringing the music with his voice. "I'm not picking ya up if ya fall on yer drunk ass!"

Even from his spot on the windowsill Uryu could see Ichigo giving his best friend the finger while hanging onto the frozen limb. A childish expression followed and Grimmjow howled in laughter before the window slammed shut muting the pounding beets again. The swordsman quickly continued his way up, nearly slipping as he pulled up onto the roof.

"Are you insane?" Uryu asked.

Ichigo huffed to catch his breath. "Well, how did you get up here?" Raising an eyebrow, Uryu scooted in spot and pointed at the window behind him. "Ah… hah, didn't think of that."

Shaking his head, Uryu rubbed a temple. _I should've just stayed home._ "Your friend's right, you're an idiot."

Laughing, Ichigo came to stand by him. He slumped up against the window and grinned. "Yeah, well this idiot is glad you showed up."

"Oh?" Now he was curious. After all, the guy did just climb up a half frozen tree to talk to him.

"Yeah," Ichigo nodded. "Except I spent all week trying to figure out your little riddle."

"And?"

The swordsman looked thoughtfully towards the sky. He watched too. The twinkling specks above them out of rhythm with the rest of the world. It followed neither the music nor the thudding in his chest. "Well, I _was_ hoping it meant yes. But then again if everyone didn't know it was just all smoke and mirrors then why would you show up?"

_Well then,_ he couldn't help but smile. "I guess I don't give you enough credit either."

"Is that why you showed up? To see what I thought of your riddle?"

"Maybe," Uryu shrugged. Honestly he didn't know what he was expecting when he made his decision to come. They stayed there in the pocket of reticence. Through the crack that he left in the window, a more lightly toned music pulsated through the structure. All of the sudden, something changed in the air. A fragment of butterfly wings fluttered in the breeze much too far away. He gasped when Ichigo grabbed his hands, pulling him to his feet. "Wh-what are you doing?!"

Ichigo let go to spin around and pull the window fully open. While it wasn't overpowering, the music was clear enough. "I was thinking, as long as you're here why don't we dance? You disappeared before I could ask earlier."

"Seriously? Up here? It's-"

"Don't worry, I won't let you fall." He was suddenly very close. Uryu could see the stitching on the impeccably made jacket. The jacket he had made. Warm eyes dark as a steaming cup of morning coffee. He could almost taste the bitter sweetness of the mixed cream and sugar cubes over shy smiles while sitting at a corner bakery. "Besides, you're really good."

His smile was dazzling and full of character. Ichigo could have asked him to dance on a billboard sign half clothed and he would have. Tonight the air prickled, filling his lungs with floating bubbles in the spring sun. There on the rooftop only the sky and stars as their witness. They laughed, dancing like the fools they were. Their life suddenly feeling fake and brand. Standing so close, drunk on the elixir of pure exhilaration, he wanted more. It was subsidiary to his very being. Staring into the oblivion that was forbidden. No longer could he deny who he longed for.

* * *

Maybe he was drunk. How many had he had already; two, three, or maybe four? It was hot; it was cold. He found intoxication in the lissome flowing body. Laughter light as a summer rain shower. It was certainly more musical than the pulsating rhythm from bellow. In that exact moment Ichigo felt an urge rushing through him. A want, no need, aching in the bones beneath his fingertips to touch the fairest, most delicate being he had ever come into contact with. _Wow, he's really… attractive._ His lips shook through a stagger breath while the music underneath their feet turned heavy and heated again. It melted away the moment and the archer sighed.

Uryu closed his eyes. A cut in Ichigo's circulation haywired through him at the loss of blue oxygen. He was about to reach out when Uryu did the most unexpected thing and fell to lay on the snow covered roof. Confusion turned to curiosity as he chuckled while shifting around and moved his sprawled out limbs. After a moment he stopped, opened the sparkling liquid eyes and smiled at Ichigo.

"Snow angels."

Ichigo blinked. He hadn't done such things since he was a child. "You're weird." He blurted out.

The archer snorted but kept smiling. "That was fun." He continued to look at Uryu laying there before him. Black and blue dyeing the pure white. Almost too angelic for the world around them. Still feeling the burning desire inside him, Ichigo slowly lowered himself next to Uryu. "What're you doing?"

"It'll be lonely up here all by itself." Ichigo answered as he too set to making the childish little snow design.

Carefully he picked himself up. Stepping over he offered Uryu a hand. His skin jolted when the cold fingers slid into his. But he didn't let go. Instead he pulled the archer up until he could wrap both arms around him. Uryu turned his surprised gaze onto him. He was drowning. Twin lakes under the night's sky shimmering and asking to be disturbed. Ichigo felt himself jumping in, clothing and all into the cool depths. Lips falling together in ripples of another time. His brain backfired. Uryu tasted like fresh lemonade being poured over ungrounded wires. Electrifyingly sweet and tangy in all the right places. Eventually they pulled apart. Breathing heavily from the deep languorous of their kiss.

Uryu swallowed, his words barely over a whisper. "K-Kurosaki… I-" He stopped them with a single finger before tilting in for another. Soft skin plush against his own, bruising from the pressure of a shy passion. Ichigo felt him quiver. He took a hand into his own and squeezed.

Blue eyes now heavy and clouded. Ichigo smiled, pulling the half breathing archer with him towards the window. And by some grace, Uryu continued to follow him. Shutting out the cold once they were inside. "Good to see you know my name too." He teased through slurred words, letting his hands wander more. They slid over the leathered hem, feeling the perfectly sculpted lines as he inched between the jacket and thin cotton shirt. "I was hoping to hear it some more."

Despite the flushed face, Uryu seemed to have reclaimed some of his senses. A coy, yet somehow still shy, smile flickered across pink lips. Slowly the archer began unzipping his coat. "Well then, why don't you stop talking and get on with it?"

An invitation was accepted on multiple rights. So why did he feel so uneasy? It wasn't like he was taking advantage of Uryu. After all, he was the one drunk! If the taste of untainted lemon chapstick had anything to say. _Maybe because I'm halfway undressing someone in the middle of my best friend's bedroom?_ He found himself half leading, half following Uryu towards the bed. His shirt rode up while deft hands clawed at his spine. Uryu gasped when Ichigo reached down and began palming the hardening bulge of his soon to be lover.

He found the zipper and pulled as he lightly pushed Uryu down to sit. It was a bit awkward maneuvering through the twisted fabric. But he managed to work the stiff member free. Ichgio grinned before taking it in. A muffled gasp was music to his ears. The pulse from downstairs dulling further, unimportant to the creation of their little bubble of a world. He tasted the lingering bitterness of his drink, the thick masculine musk and the hint of a lemony aftertaste while he licked messily.

"Kuro-saki…"

He had never heard his name spoken with such mercy. It wasn't like he was ever looking for forgiveness in the first place. Still he pulled away. They stared at each other. Uryu's eyes looking quite offended by his surplus of clothing. Slowly he began undressing just in case he was reading all the messages wrong. He could always play it off that he was too drunk. Which he really was. But it certainly didn't detour any thoughts about continuing when Uryu started doing the same.

They ended up crawling. Uryu backwards and Ichigo prowling forward on the bed. Everything else but the panting of Uryu's voice waterlogged in the background. The party bellow just the remnants of tiny pieces of song coming from a person's headphones turned up. Ichigo touched the perfectly pale skin. Marveling at the carefully marked black ink. _So smooth, _he thought. _I wonder if they are real._ They reminded Ichigo of lightning: fresh, raw and infinitely intriguing. He licked, tracing the lines softly with his tongue. Tasting the dark bolts electrified him. It felt him hungry and excited. And by the looks of it, Uryu was suffering the same effects.

Despite the fact they were just rolling around in the snow it was hot. The air steaming around them as they fumbled. Ichigo had never been with another guy before. But the intensity took him over. Driving him feverishly in the tight heat. He was lost, captivated in the endless boiling ocean. Drowning and drowning until the blue turned to black.

* * *

It was hard to tell when the music stopped. Or how long it had been since he started staring at the sky blue ceiling. The stucco pattern weaving imaginary pictures as he laid perfectly still. Ichigo not but a hands width away, passed out and naked. He did have to admire how much energy the swordsman had even while drunk. He was even able to pull off and toss the used condom in the waste basket under the nightstand before seemingly losing all consciousness.

Uryu sighed. It certainly wasn't his intensions to fool around, bump about, then losing his virtue to the school's most wanted, loudmouthed- orange haired- deviously obstructive – Kurosaki Ichigo. He frowned to himself as the light snores rose from the pillow next to him. _No… I should've guessed something like this would happen._ Even now he still expected other students to pour into the bedroom bringing the practical joke to its apex. But there they were, stuck in a little world not their own. The realization of what they had done still fresh in his mind. Ichigo's bitter sweet kisses and intense sex suddenly much too real for him.

It took him no longer than eighty seconds to fully dress himself. Uryu's heart thumped quickly in either shame or desire, he wasn't sure which. At the door, he stopped. Looking back upon the blue cloud that still held the sleeping swordsman. The silence became his innocence that was left behind. He was floating rapidly away, fuzzy and high on anxiety.

Outside the room wasn't much better. Down the hall a couple clung to each other, locked in a hormonal passion against a side table with a lamp that rocked, threatening to crash on the floor. They ignored him, but Uryu still wondered if they had heard the heated sex coming from the room he just exited. He didn't want to stay to find out and spun around, running straight into a hard object.

"Hey! Where've you been, man?"

Uryu looked up. The redhead holding him by both shoulders. "Renji," he sighed. His cousin both a savior and justicar at the same time.

A moment passed and Uryu didn't say anything else. Renji studying him with worry as they stood at the top of the stairs. "Hey, you okay?" He finally asked.

Shaking his head, Uryu looked away. "Yeah,"

"Hmm," Renji sounded unconvinced but didn't press on. That's what made him so easy to talk to. That was why Uryu had gone to him in the first place. "Let's go home, Uryu."

The cold stabbed back into his bones as they left the messy remains of a house. Slowly the shattered bubble pieced away and everything was normal again. No longer did things float about in a timeless fashion. Tomorrow he would be Ishida Uryu, just a normal, dorky, student again. And Kurosaki Ichigo? On the other side of the window not quite seeing through.

And even if they stood there holding hands and looking back Uryu would wonder if things were different if they still be together. How many times would they find each other, cross paths to fall in love and fight by each other's side. Star crossed in the frozen wasteland, under the blooming sakura, hiding beneath the sparkling night, and standing in the smoldering rain. Their life a snow-globe of a forgotten memories.


End file.
